Is Equal Opportunity Enough

Is Equal Opportunity Enough PDF Author: Christine Sypnowich
Publisher: Haymarket Books
ISBN:
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 162

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Book Description
Equal opportunity is a widely shared ideal. As Joe Biden put it in his first executive order as president, “equal opportunity is the bedrock of American democracy.” But is equal opportunity enough? Does it truly capture the meaning of equality? In a neoliberal age that prizes personal responsibility and individual merit, the ideal has been increasingly called into question. Taking equality seriously, critics argue, means aiming to ensure that we all live equally flourishing lives—not merely that we have equal shots at upward mobility. That means rethinking a range of social institutions, from education and land ownership to finance and neighborhood development. Featuring work by philosophers and economists, historians and sociologists, this issue explores the importance of outcomes, not just opportunities.

Is Equal Opportunity Enough

Is Equal Opportunity Enough PDF Author: Christine Sypnowich
Publisher: Haymarket Books
ISBN:
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 162

Get Book Here

Book Description
Equal opportunity is a widely shared ideal. As Joe Biden put it in his first executive order as president, “equal opportunity is the bedrock of American democracy.” But is equal opportunity enough? Does it truly capture the meaning of equality? In a neoliberal age that prizes personal responsibility and individual merit, the ideal has been increasingly called into question. Taking equality seriously, critics argue, means aiming to ensure that we all live equally flourishing lives—not merely that we have equal shots at upward mobility. That means rethinking a range of social institutions, from education and land ownership to finance and neighborhood development. Featuring work by philosophers and economists, historians and sociologists, this issue explores the importance of outcomes, not just opportunities.

Pursuing Equal Opportunities

Pursuing Equal Opportunities PDF Author: Lesley A. Jacobs
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 9780521530217
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 300

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Book Description
This book offers original and innovative contributions to the debate about equality of opportunity. The first part sets out a theory of equality of opportunity that presents equal opportunities as a normative device for the regulation of competition for scarce resources. The second part shifts the focus to the consideration of the practical application by courts or legislatures or public policy makers of policies for addressing racial, class or gender injustices. The author examines standardized tests, affirmative action, workfare, universal health-care, comparable worth, and the economic consequences of divorce.

Bottlenecks

Bottlenecks PDF Author: Joseph Fishkin
Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
ISBN: 0199812144
Category : Law
Languages : en
Pages : 290

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Book Description
Bottlenecks introduces a powerful new way of understanding equal opportunity. Rather than literal equalization, Joseph Fishkin argues that Americans ought to aim to broaden the range of opportunities open to people, at every stage in life, to pursue different paths. This approach has significant implications for public policy and antidiscrimination law.

Equality and Preferential Treatment

Equality and Preferential Treatment PDF Author: Marshall Cohen
Publisher: Princeton University Press
ISBN: 9780691019888
Category : Law
Languages : en
Pages : 234

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Book Description
These essays, with one exception originally published in Philosophy & Public Affairs, consider the moral problems associated with improving the social and economic position of disadvantaged groups. If the situation of women and minorities improves so that their opportunities are equal to those of more favored groups, will they then be in a competitive position conducive to equal achievement? If not, can preferential hiring or preferential admission to educational institutions be justified? The contributors explore the complexities of this problem from several points of view. The discussions in Part I are more theoretical and concentrate on the application to this case of general considerations from ethical theory. The discussions in Part II also take up theoretical questions, but they start from specific problems about the constitutionality and the effectiveness of certain methods of achieving equality and counteracting discrimination. The two groups of essays demonstrate admirably the close connection between moral philosophy and questions of law and policy. The issues discussed include compensation, liability, victimization, the significance of group membership, the intrinsic importance of racial, sexual, or meritocratic criteria, and the overall effects of preferential policies.

Rawls's Egalitarianism

Rawls's Egalitarianism PDF Author: Alexander Kaufman
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 1108429114
Category : Law
Languages : en
Pages : 285

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Book Description
A new analysis of John Rawls's theory of distributive justice, focusing on the ways his ideas have both influenced and been misinterpreted by the current egalitarian literature.

Against Equality of Opportunity

Against Equality of Opportunity PDF Author: Matt Cavanagh
Publisher: Clarendon Press
ISBN: 0191584045
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 234

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Book Description
Against Equality of Opportunity deals with the ways in which opportunities - education, jobs and other things which affect how people get on in life - are distributed. Take jobs: should the best person always get the job? Or should everyone be given an equal 'life chance'? Or can we somehow combine these two ideas, saying that the best person should always get the job, but that everyone should have an equal chance to become the best? These seem to be the standard views, but this book argues that they are all flawed. We need to understand meritocracy for what it is - a technical rather than a moral ideal; and we need to accept that equality just isn't something we should be striving for at all in this area. We also need to rethink our approach to the related issue of discrimination. We tend to assume discrimination is wrong because it violates either meritocracy or equality, when in fact it is wrong for quite different reasons. In all these areas, then, Cavanagh aims to loosen the grip of established ways of thinking, in order that other ideas might find room to breathe. This is particularly important in the case of meritocracy, which after the recent conversion of the centre-left now dominates the debate more than ever. This book will be of interest to students and teachers of political philosophy, but ultimately it is aimed at anyone who cares about the fundamental values that lie behind the way society is organized. Though the argument is rigorous, it does not require a professional philosophical training to follow it.

Why Inequality Matters

Why Inequality Matters PDF Author: Shlomi Segall
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 1107129818
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 267

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Book Description
This book explores and defends the view that inequality is intrinsically bad when and because it leads to arbitrary disadvantage.

How to Make Opportunity Equal

How to Make Opportunity Equal PDF Author: Paul Gomberg
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
ISBN: 047069162X
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 192

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Book Description
This critical examination of racial equality takes a new approach to breaking down racial barriers by proposing a system of equal opportunity through shared labor and contributive justice. Focuses on how race and class inevitably structure vastly unequal life prospects Shows how human society can be organized in a way that does not socialize children for lives of routine labour Looks towards contribution, not distribution, as a way to promote racial equality Argues that by sharing routine and complex labor, social relationships would be transformed, eliminating competition for limited opportunities to develop and contribute abilities A discussion board for ideas and comments relating to the book can be found at: http://howtomakeopportunityequal.blogspot.com/

On Inequality

On Inequality PDF Author: Harry G. Frankfurt
Publisher: Princeton University Press
ISBN: 0691167141
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 114

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Book Description
From the author of the #1 New York Times bestseller On Bullshit, the case for worrying less about the rich and more about the poor Economic inequality is one of the most divisive issues of our time. Yet few would argue that inequality is a greater evil than poverty. The poor suffer because they don't have enough, not because others have more, and some have far too much. So why do many people appear to be more distressed by the rich than by the poor? In this provocative book, the #1 New York Times bestselling author of On Bullshit presents a compelling and unsettling response to those who believe that the goal of social justice should be economic equality or less inequality. Harry Frankfurt, one of the most influential moral philosophers in the world, argues that we are morally obligated to eliminate poverty—not achieve equality or reduce inequality. Our focus should be on making sure everyone has a sufficient amount to live a decent life. To focus instead on inequality is distracting and alienating. At the same time, Frankfurt argues that the conjunction of vast wealth and poverty is offensive. If we dedicate ourselves to making sure everyone has enough, we may reduce inequality as a side effect. But it’s essential to see that the ultimate goal of justice is to end poverty, not inequality. A serious challenge to cherished beliefs on both the political left and right, On Inequality promises to have a profound impact on one of the great debates of our time.

Rethinking Equal Opportunity

Rethinking Equal Opportunity PDF Author: Harlan Beckley
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield
ISBN: 1538191067
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 181

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Book Description
Most societies claim they support equal opportunity. But what does equal opportunity mean in practice? Beckley offers a substantive principle, disposition, and set of practices around genuine equality that rescues us from vacuous political cliches. He provides a robust understanding of equality of opportunity to better approximate justice for all.